San Jose @ Chicago preview

Last Meeting ( Mar 26, 2018 ) San Jose 4, Chicago 3

The San Jose Sharks are beginning to assert themselves again in the Western Conference as they seek a season-high fourth straight victory Sunday against the host Chicago Blackhawks. The Sharks lost four in a row from Nov. 24-Dec. 1 by giving up five goals per game but have surrendered a total of 12 tallies while going 5-1-0 since after edging Dallas 3-2 on Thursday.

“It’s getting better and better, as we anticipated,” San Jose defenseman Erik Karlsson told reporters after extending his assist streak to four games on Thursday. “I think that as a team, we’re starting to grow into what we need to be, and we still got a long way to go, and we got to keep doing that.” The Sharks, who visit Minnesota on Tuesday to finish their two-game trek, have lost seven of their last nine contests on the road (2-6-1) as they prepare to play a Chicago team that resides in the Central Division cellar. The Blackhawks have showed a glimmer of hope in the first two games of their homestand, knocking off Pittsburgh 6-3 on Wednesday before dropping a 4-3 overtime decision against powerful Winnipeg two nights later. “I think we played really well for a lot of the game,” Chicago coach Jeremy Colliton told reporters. “We still had those moments where we lost our edge. … Credit to our guys, they played to the end and we found a way to get a point. Could have been two, and that’s frustrating.”

TV: 7 p.m. ET, NBCS California (San Jose), WGN (Chicago)

ABOUT THE SHARKS (17-11-5): Timo Meier has registered two goals in back-to-back games, giving him 10 points in his last six contests, prompting the veteran Joe Thornton to tell reporters of the 22-year-old, “You can see the confidence oozing out of him.” Meier is tied for the team lead in points (32) with Logan Couture, who has recorded two goals and eight assists in his last nine games. Captain Joe Pavelski has scored seven of his team-high 20 goals in the last nine games while goaltender Martin Jones has posted a 4-1-0 record and .943 save percentage in his last five appearances.

ABOUT THE BLACKHAWKS (10-18-6): Captain Jonathan Toews has played a big role in helping Chicago halt its eight-game losing streak, registering three goals and three assists in his last two contests. Toews is second on the team with 30 points - seven behind Patrick Kane, who has notched two goals and five assists in his last six games despite being kept off the scoresheet on Friday. Brandon Saad has posted back-to-back two-point performances to reach 20 on the season and defenseman Duncan Keith has recorded four assists in his last three contests.

OVERTIME

1. Chicago G Corey Crawford (6-14-2, .903 save percentage) has allowed at least three goals in each of his last 10 games.

2. Thornton has registered 1,038 career assists and needs two to tie Marcel Dionne for 10th place on the all-time list.

3. Blackhawks D Brent Seabrook, who scored in the win over Pittsburgh, is one goal shy of 100 for his career.

PREDICTION: Sharks 4, Blackhawks 3